Main themes and sectors addressed in the national State of Environment report

The purpose of the State of Environment (SoE)[1] report is to present objective information about the state of environment in Poland for decision-makers and the general public. The Chief Inspector for Environmental Protection is obliged by law to prepare a SoE report at least every four years[2]. The report should consider in particular data from the State Environmental Monitoring (SEM)[3]. The general structure of the report refers to priorities identified in national environmental policies[4].

The report addresses the following environmental issues: resource use and waste, biodiversity and forests, air pollution, water quality, noise, electromagnetic fields, ionizing radiation, ozone layer and climate change. Each chapter begins with information about the state of the environment followed by drivers and pressures and their impacts.

Key findings of the State of Environment report

Over the previous two decades Poland has made significant progress in the area of environmental protection and reduced the pressure on the environment. Despite such successes some problems remain.

Poland remains one of the most material- and energy-consuming economies of the European Union (EU) in terms of efficiency. The rate of increase in final energy use is much lower than the rate of increase in GDP[5]. Domestic material consumption has been growing intensively in correlation with economic growth[6]. The latter results mainly from the use of non-metallic materials for infrastructure projects.

For the last decade the total amount of industrial waste has remained at a relatively similar level. Its main source is mining, quarrying and manufacturing. Since the mid-2000s the amount of municipal waste generated has been slightly decreasing and has now reached 314 kg per capita (2012). The use of landfill sites remains the main method of municipal waste disposal[6].

Poland achieved and maintains valid national emission ceilings for air pollutants (Fig. 1). Continuous development of the Polish economy in the last two decades has not led to increased emissions, and in some cases a systemic reduction has been observed (sulphur dioxide).

In spite of the improvement of air quality in Poland, exceedances of target value for tropospheric ozone in the summer season and exceedances of limit values for PM10, PM2,5 and benzo(a)pyrene in the winter season remain a serious problem. The latter is particularly related to emission from domestic heating for households and obsolete transport options[9].

Note: Figure shows substances stated in the Treaty of Accession of the Republic of Poland to the EU, in the scope of the National Emissions Ceilings Directive 2001/81/EC[7

Source: Ministry of the Environment, National Centre for Emission Management[8]

The pressure on water resources has been decreasing. Since the early 2000s, water abstraction has reminded stable. Municipal waste water discharges decreased by 12% whilst the percentage of the population able to benefit from waste water treatment plants increased from 53% in 2000 to 68.5% in 2012. After a significant reduction in the early 1990s, the use of mineral fertilizers stabilized in the mid 2000s. There was, nevertheless, a slight increase in nitrogen fertilizers beween mid 2000s and now (2012)[6]. The negative impact from various industrial sources was limited as well.

As a result of action taken in the area of water management, nitrogen and phosphorus discharges flowing through rivers in Poland to the Baltic Sea have decreased. Nevertheless the quality of surface water in some areas is insufficient. The chemical status of groundwater is good in 80% of measurement points covered by SEM.

A steep increase in the number of cars since the beginning of this century has resulted in an increase in a traffic noise from roads. According to noise maps prepared for agglomerations under the 2002/49/EC directive[10] about three million inhabitants are exposed to exceedances of noise limits for the day-evening-night time period and two million for the night time period alone.

Despite disadvantages of the current structure of fuel consumption (over 50% of total primary energy consumption is from coal), during the period 1988-2012 Poland managed to reduce GHG emissions by almost 29% and met its Kyoto protocol[11] requirements with a surplus of 24%[12].

At the same time the country is characterized by an exceptionally rich nature and landscape. The fact that Poland is a natural habitat for rare species on Europe-wide scale, makes it particularly responsible for the protection of natural heritage. 32.5% of the territory of Poland is protected in one way or another, usually related to natural or scenic importance. Forest cover has been permanently increasing since the mid 1990s and reached 29.3% of the country's territory in 2012[6].

Main policy responses to key environmental challenges and concerns

Poland has undergone constant and intensive economic growth during the last two decades. Therefore one of the major challenges is to achieve sustainable development through such growth and environmental protection requirements.

Reflections on the green economy are included, inter alia, in the following documents:

National Development Strategy 2020[13] based on a sustainable development scenario;

Energy security and the environment strategy – 2020 perspective[14] - interlinks quality of life and state of environment with the sustainable development of the energy sector, the energy security of Poland as well as the effectiveness and competitiveness of the Polish economy;

National Programme for the Development of Low-Emission Economy[15] - aims to support improvement of energy- and resource-efficiency, waste prevention and better waste management, and promotion of new consumption patterns.

National Waste Management Plan 2014 specifies objectives and measures in this area[16]. Waste management plans are also elaborated for 16 voivodeships (regions). The national waste prevention programme was adopted in 2014[17].

The National Fund for Environmental Protection and Water Management launched a nationwide programme (KAWKA)dedicated to problems of emissions from individual heating for households. It financially supports initiatives aiming to reduce emission in residential areas, increase energy-efficiency and develop diffused energy sources. It will help to achieve air quality standards and limit exposure to air pollution[18].

Achieving good status of water is supported by various documents including, inter alia, 10 water management plans[19], the Water and Environment Programme[20], and the National Programme for Municipal Waste Water Treatment[21]. Limiting the impact on water resources from agriculture is supported by various rural development programmes[22] aiming to reduce nutrient loads in freshwater bodies and the sustainable use of fertilizers.

The Polish National Strategy for Adaptation to Climate Change by 2020 aims to ensure sustainable development and the efficient functioning of the economy and society in a changing climate. The document specifies objectives and adaptation measures to be taken in the most vulnerable sectors and areas: water management, agriculture, forestry, biodiversity and legally protected areas, health, energy, construction, transport, mountainous, coastal and urban areas[23].

Protecting biodiversity and the landscape is important. The national strategy for the protection and sustainable utilisation of biodiversity and The action plan for the period 2007-2013 aim to support this[24]. They will be amended to consider the Aichi Targets for the period 2014-2020.

Country specific issues

Sustainable development can be supported by investments in innovative projects, especially green and clean carbon technologies. Development of green technologies in Poland is supported, inter alia, by the following:

GreenEvo – Green Technologies Accelerator[25] is an innovative project initiated and managed by the Ministry of the Environment. It promotes Polish environmental technologies and supports the development of this sector at home and abroad. Environmentally sound technologies are selected with a view to foreign export. Participation in the project offers companies training and consulting services as well as support to meet the expectations of foreign contractors. So far 62 winners have been selected in 5 separate editions of the project. In 2013 overall sales from companies which have taken part in the project grew on average by 36%. Sales abroad increased by 50%. Meanwhile employment increased by 40%.

Participation (on a voluntary basis) in an EU established Environmental Technology Verification (ETV) pilot programme[26]. This program is a new tool is to help innovative environmental technologies reach their target markets. The Institute of Technologies and Life Sciences from Poznań and the Institute of Environmental Protection - National Research Insitute operate as Polish verification bodies. The Ministry of the Environment is also looking to create instruments of support for entrepreneurs who wish to benefit from the ETV.

[7] EC, 2001, Directive 2001/81/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 October 2011 on the national emission ceilings for the certain atmospheric pollutants (OJ L 309, 27.11.2001, p. 22);

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SOER 2015 country briefings provide an overview of state of the environment across 39 European countries. They are part of the EEA's report SOER 2015, addressing the state of, trends in and prospects for the environment in Europe. The EEA's task is to provide timely, targeted, relevant and reliable information on Europe's environment.